


Clean Tea

by BaconBits24



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Happy Ending, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-01
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-10-13 10:54:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10512324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BaconBits24/pseuds/BaconBits24
Summary: Twenty years after the Battle for Trost, a certain Captain has found a most unusual way to settle down.





	

**Author's Note:**

> For the purposes of this little fic, the Shifter lifespan has been mercilessly tossed off a cliff. Also, since I was first introduced to Attack on Titan through the anime, Hange is female in this story. Also, hey, an SNK fic where no one dies!

The city of Trost has certainly changed a lot over the past twenty years. For the first time in living memory, children are born and growing up without being taught to fear the giant creatures lurking outside the Walls. The giant boulder that blocks the gate is merely a curiosity and an inconvenience until a way to move it can be devised. For some, Titans are little more than a large portion of their history lessons. For others, the memories will last until they die.

On a little corner street, with one of the few trees in the city standing proudly beside it, sits a small tea shop. It's been open for little more than five years, but already many of the city's residents can't imagine life without it. Its front is painted a pretty forest green, making it stand out from the brown and off-white buildings around it. The pure white front door (which is never dirty) sits beneath a silver bell that jingles happily whenever it opens, both to welcome customers and to bid them good day. The two corner walls have large windows set into them, so that pedestrians walking by are tempted to stop in for a cup and a pastry.

The interior is almost militaristic in its neatness, yet still manages to seem cozy. A large fireplace sits proudly in the center of the room, open to all sides so as to warm the entire place in the winter. The shop comfortably seats fifty, but there have been occasions where upwards of eighty people have managed to squeeze inside. The homey green and brown interior is warm and inviting. On summer days, the door is propped open to admit a breeze, and people feel as though they are enjoying a picnic.

Each tablecloth is hand-embroidered with twisting, curling vines creeping up from the hem towards the table's edge, stopping just short of the top. The napkins, too, are decorated, depicting different types of wildflowers. The shop boasts a wide collection of different types of tea, with black teas being the staple. One wall is devoted entirely to a large serving counter, proudly displaying different types of sandwiches, soups, and pastries. A door behind the counter leads into a kitchen, from which delicious odors drift out into the main room.

The proprietor of this tea shop is its true claim to fame. At first glance, he is very unassuming. He's shorter than most, barely topping five feet, and his half-lidded eyes give him a somewhat disinterested expression. He is usually found either in the kitchen preparing tea or in the main room cleaning. With a few gray streaks in his hair and hard lines on his brow, he appears to be in his forties, though many suspect he is older than he looks.

His staff consists entirely of young people, ranging anywhere from 15-25, who are all happy to work for him. He seems to be happy to have them working for him, though he hardly ever smiles.

However, one group of people can always make him smile without fail. The shop has many regular customers, but only one group is referred to as the Regular Crowd. They almost always come in together, a group of at least seven, with one woman considerably older than the rest. The owner always knows when they have arrived, and the other patrons are given the rare treat of seeing him truly smile. It's also the only time he stops working, because he sits with them at their table and talks with them.

The older woman, who looks to be around the owner's age, is always wearing glasses, despite the fact that she has only one eye. An almost feral smile is constantly upon her face, and her high-pitched laughter is infectious. Many strangers were shocked at hearing the owner refer to her as "Shitty Glasses", but when she responded happily with "Captain Pipsqueak", they realized that was just their way.

The tall man with a face that vaguely resembled a horse seemed to be the unofficial leader of the younger people. He usually chose their seat, and he always offered to pay for everyone's orders, despite their protests. Even though he seemed happy enough with them, if one looked closely, there was a sadness in his eyes that never truly left, and likely never would.

The next two were always together, cracking jokes, making strange faces, and doing whatever they could to make the others laugh. They were practically inseparable, the young woman who seemed to harbor an unnatural obsession with food, and the man who was almost as obsessed with her. The wedding rings on their hands were really the only outward indication of their relationship, since they weren't exactly the lovey-dovey type of couple. However, all they had to do was look in each other's eyes, and a lifetime of shared experiences were remembered.

The only blond of the group also seemed to be the shyest. He spoke little, seemingly content to simply listen to the others around him with a contented grin. Occasionally, his bright blue eyes would cloud over with some distant memory, but all it would take was a light touch on his shoulder from one of his two closest friends, and he would be brought back to the present with an apologetic smile.

The last pair are something of an enigma. No one is quite sure of the true nature of their relationship, but it's clear that they are incredibly close. The woman with raven hair and gray eyes, who never seemed to be without an old, frayed, threadbare scarf, even in the height of summer. She had let her hair grow out since her younger days, and it now flowed beautifully down her back. Her smile was usually small, but the true smile was in her eyes. It shone through with love for everyone at the table, especially the green-eyed man she always stayed close to. He was loud and boisterous and had a bit of a short temper, but he was far more mellow than he had been twenty years ago. Every now and then, he would gaze at his right hand longingly, as though there was something he was missing. But after a moment or two, he would sigh, let it go, and return his attention to his friends, his family.

The Clean Tea Shop was a haven for most, a place where the past would never be forgotten, and where the future was always something to look forward to. But for others, it was something more. For Levi, Hange, Jean, Sasha, Connie, Armin, Mikasa, and Eren…it was a little piece of home.


End file.
